Derek's baseball "injury"

Yesterday, Derek got a minor injury at his baseball game. The baseball hit him right on his thumb as he was swinging the bat. He was in quite a bit of pain, but ended up with a really cool "owie"! We had to take a picture to remember...

A fun day in Salt Lake City

Yesterday, the kids and I went downtown to see Kevin for lunch. We had a little picnic at a park near Kev's work. It was so much fun and the weather was PERFECT!

Afterward, I took the kids over to the Gateway Mall to play in the water. Brooklyn and Derek had a great time running around and getting wet. Benjamin even enjoyed standing on the side and getting sprinkled on. Tyler doesn't LOVE water, so he helped me take good care of Ben. Afterward, we got ice cream and shopped for a bit. It was a fun day!

A trip to the park

A couple of weeks ago, Kev and I took the kids to a park here in Riverton down by the Jordan River Parkway. We went on a little hike and enjoyed exploring. The kids loved looking for "treasures", finding stinkbugs, and running around the trails. Since the park is next to a driving range, Tyler enjoyed finding a few golf balls as well. We had a great time, but we somehow only took one decent picture, so here it is....

I ran my first Half Marathon...and lived!

On Saturday, May 16th, I ran my first half marathon (13.1 miles) and it was so AWESOME! I was a little worried because my foot had been hurting me quite a bit and it was still hurting the morning of the race. It wasn't too bad, but I was paranoid. I really didn't want to have to quit halfway through and hitch a ride to the finish line. How embarressing would that be!?? But, I'm happy to say that my foot didn't bother me at all! I was so happy and so grateful for Ibuprofin!

Anyway, the race was in Ogden and the course was absolutely beautiful (and mostly downhill!) Kevin and my friend, Melodi ran it with me. I also knew a few other people who ran it as well. Kev and I didn't run together though...I wanted him to be able to make his best time...and he did! Melodi and I ran about 5 or so miles together and it was so fun. I felt so good most of the way, but the last mile was a killer. The finish line could not have come fast enough! I was happy with my time though. I wanted to finish around 2 hours and 10 minutes and I finished in 2 hours and 4 minutes! Kevin finished in 1 hour and 53 minutes. He did great! My mom and my sister, Holly came to see us finish and it was fun to see them. I just felt so good at the end! It was so so so so fun! I LOVED it! I can't wait to do it again!

My latest PROJECT!

Okay, last month I got a wild hair and decided I wanted to make a little canvas toy car mat for Derek (and the other kids). I'm actually surprised I haven't made one already because Derek has been obsessed with toy cars ever since he was born!

I had a lot of fun making it. Kevin designed the airport and baseball field and Brooklyn and Derek helped me color some of it too. We had a lot of fun, but since it took me about a month to make, I told the kids they NEED to play with it every single day now! ;-)

Random Pictures

I have a few random pictures that I thought I'd throw on here...

Ben is getting so big! He loves to climb and get into EVERYTHING! Today I found him ON this little toy in his room. He was so proud of himself and loved stepping on the button to make the music start!

I call this picture...."Trying to keep a baby happy at a baseball game!" The cell phone comes in handy and becomes quite the entertainer when it's needed!


My mom, Brooklyn, and I at General Conference in April. It was so fun to be there and Brooklyn was so happy to be able to go now that she's 8!

A month of awards for Brooklyn

This past month has been a lot of fun for Brooklyn. She was chosen as one of the Students of the Month for May. She received a little bracelet and was recognized at an assembly at her school. She was very happy about it.

She was also a winner in a writing contest for Jordan School District. She wrote a poem and the district compiled a book with her poem in it. She went to a little award ceremony and was able to read her poem. It was fun.

She also won the Riverton City Choice Award for April. We went to a City Council Meeting and the mayor recognized her along with another student and teacher from her school. She received some gift certificates and her picture was in the local newsletter. She was very excited about that!

She's been so happy with all the attention. We're very proud of her and I'm very grateful for little contests and awards that give kids opportunities to be recognized. She has been thrilled!

Brooklyn with Mayor Applegarth


Brooklyn with Mayor Applegarth and the other award recipients


Brooklyn with her certificate from the writing contest